Chasing the Moon by A. Lee Martinez

Intimidating. Martinez mixes bits of Cthulhu Mythos with Norse mythology while maintaining a comedic slant throughout. How does he do it?

Three writing techniques that I think helped him pull it off:

Use the mundane to ground bizarre events. That could be the relationship between two characters, or the rhythms of work, or the ubiquity of bureaucracy.

When describing weird things happening, a deadpan tone with a bit of sarcasm can both help the reader sympathize with the characters and help them see the humor in the situation.

Voice goes a long way in defining a character. If each character has a very distinct voice, then the reader doesn’t need as many vocal tags, they don’t need as much description of the character, they can build it in their mind from the dialog.